Press ironer



April! 29,, W43, T. R. USH 2,239,91

IHESS IRONER Filed Feb. 16, 1938 3 Sheets-Sheet l 740 //v VE/VTOR 772504 012 75? ,Bas Y April w, 1941" T. R. BUSH. 23mm PRE S S XRONER Patented Apr. 29, 194i STE ti PRESS IRONER Theodore lit-i Bush, Royal flak, Mich, assignor to Borg-Warner Corporation, Chicago, llll., a corporation of Illinois 4 Claims.

This invention relates to the art of laundering, with particular reference to the pressing or ironingof clothing.

As a general rule, ironing apparatus of the press or plate type has relied either upon the application of force by some mechanical force multiplying means actuated manually by the operator after juxtapositioning of the ironing elements or has employed some extraneous force applying means which is merely under the control of the operator. The first of these two methods of operation is disadvantageous in that it requires an extra movement and the exertion of extra force upon the part of the operator after the ironing elements have been placed in ironing position. The second of these two methods re quires some type of more or less permanent connection to a source of power, such power being releasable by the operator to perform the pressing operation.

It is an object-of the invention to overcome the disadvantages inherent. in the two above-mentioned types of ironing apparatus by providing a portable press ironer. which. operates during the movement of the ironingJei-ements to. their ironin'g position to. store upenergy which may be released when the elements are so positioned.

A further object. of the'invention is to provide ironing apparatus of the character described above'which may be operated with one hand so as to leave the operators' other hand free for handling the material. to be pressed.

An: additional object of the invention is to provide. in a press ironer means whereby energy available for. performin the pressing operation may be. accumulated; the. result of the positionin'g. movement of the ironing elements, and to' provide meanswhereby such energy is releasable at'the'will ofthe operator.

A further object of the invention is to provide ironing apparatus of the class described which is easily and cheaply fabricated, light in weight so as to be portable and simple to operate.

Additional objects will appear hereinafter as the description proceeds and will be pointed out more fully'in the accompanying claims.

In thedrawings, of which thererare three sheets and which are to be understood as descriptive of the best method of practicing the invention and not as limiting:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of ironing apparatus showing the ironing elements in ironing position;

Fig. 2. is a. vertical sectional view through the ironingz'apparatus of Fig.1 but showing the ironing' elements in their separated position;

F g. 3 is a vertical sectional view of the ironing apparatus corresponding to Fig. 2 but showing the ironing elements in ironing relationship but prior to the application of ironing force therebetween;

Fig. 4 is avertical sectional view corresponding to Fig. 3 illustratingthe parts of the ironing apparatus after the release of ironing force;

Fig. 5 is a sectional View of a portion of the ironing apparatus shown in Fig. 4 and is taken substantially upon planes as indicated by the broken line 55 of Fig. 4, looking in the direction of the arrows, portions being broken away, more clearly to illustrate the invention; and

Fig. 6 is a sectional view through a portion of the ironing apparatus taken upon a plane asindicated by the line 6-9 of Fig. 4 and looking in the direction of the arrows.

Referring more specifically to the drawings, the present invention will be seen to comprise ironing apparatus which has a base It for resting upon a table or other flat surface, such base being provided with a pedestal I! at its forward portion for supporting an ironing element Hi, which may comprise a buck. The buck M is supported from the frame It of the base ill by means of compression springs l8" interposed beneath the under surf-ace 2i of the buck M and the top surface of the frame it. Springs i 8" are adapted to be initially loaded by means of bolts 22 extending through apertures in the lower buck' surface 29 and in the frame it and being provided with a tensioning nut 25 for increasing or decreasing the initial loading.

Toward the rear of the machine the base It is provided with a pair of upstanding portions 23 which are adapted to receive between them the rear portion of an arm 23. A shaft 3% is secured intermediate the upstanding projections 26 by means of cap screws 32 threaded into tapped openings in theends of the shaft 3%. These cap screws may be covered as shown in Fig. 1 by decorative buttons 34. The arm 28 has spaced portions provided with apertures 35 for rotatably receiving the shaft 36.

A collar 38 is secured to the inside of one of the walls of the arm 23 by means of screws all and such collar has a running fit with the shaft 3?). g

A collar 42 is pinned to the shaft 30 at 44 and a spiral spring lt having an inside diameter equal to or slightly less than the outside diameter of the collars 38 and lil is disposed about these collars. One'end of the spiral spring 56 is provided with a projecting portion 48 Which is positioned between a pair of studs 58 secured in the wall of the arm 28 adjacent the shaft 38. The opposite end 52 of the spiral spring 46 projects into space intermediate the side walls of the arm 28 and in a position to be engaged by a foot 54 of a rotatable element 56 carried upon a shaft 58 extending transversely of arm 28 adjacent the pivot shaft 38. The pivot element 56 is maintained upon the shaft 58 against endwise movement thereon by means of cotter pins 68 extending through the shaft 58 upon opposite sides of the element 56. v

A link 62 is pivotally connected at 64 to the element 56, the opposite end of the link having pivotal connection with an operating lever 66, which in turn is mounted upon a shaft 68 extending transversely of the forward end of the arm 28. Operating lever 66 is provided with a handle I8 whereby it may be grasped by the operator for rotating the release element 56 to unwind the spring 46.

It will be recognized that this structure provides means for maintaining the arm in any desired position against upward or counter clock- Wise rotation of the arm as viewed in Figures 2 to 4 except when the spring 46 has been unwound by means of the element 56. Movement of the arm 28 in a clockwise direction is not hindered by the spring 46 as the arm 28 is then rotating in such a direction as to tend to cause the inside diameter of the spring to be slightly enlarged by unwinding movement, resulting in the spring sliding rotatably over the collar 42 which is fixed against rotation upon the shaft 38. It will be recognized that any lifting movement on the forward end of the arm 28 will cause the studs 58 to rotate the projecting end 48 of the spring 46 in such a direction as to wind up and tighten the spring 46 upon its cooperating collars 38 and 42. Such tightening movement will cause the spring 46 frictionally to grip the collars 38 and 42 and resist movement of the collar 38 in a direction which would permit the arm to rise.

A depending portion of the lever 66 is adapted to cooperate with a depressed portion I2 of a leaf spring "I4 secured to the forward portion of the arm 28' so as to prevent accidental movement of the arm 66 in a direction to actuate the release member 56 during the pressing operation. The forward end of the arm 28 is provided with a pair of downwardly extending ears I6 which carry a pivot pin "I8 for supporting a heated ironing shoe 88. The ironing shoe 88 may be heated by means of electrical elements (not shown) which receive their energy from an outlet cord 82 extending through an insulated bushing 84 into the shoe 88.

Thermostatic means may be provided for controlling the temperature of the shoe 88 and such means may be adjustable through an indicating member 86 located upon the top surface of the shoe 88. The arm 28 is maintained in its raised position by a balancing spring 88 which extends between a pin 88 secured to the rear portion of the arm 28 and a projection 82 fast upon the base I8. A .nut 84 is threaded upon the end of the lower spring anchor to adjust the tension upon the spring 88.

The rear end of the arm 28 also carries a pin 86 which cooperates with a slot 88 formed in the upper end of a lever I88 pivotally mounted upon a shaft I82 secured to the upstanding rear portions 26 of the base I8 by means of cap screws I84. Lever I88 has secured thereto adjacent its lower portion a stub shaft I86 which is tightly secured between a shouldered portion I88 and a nut H8 to the lever I88. Upon an enlarged portion H2 of the stub shaft I86 there is rotatably received a collar H4 which has a reduced diameter H6 for receiving a coil spring I I 8 of the same inside diameter as the outside diameter H6 of the collar H4. One end I 28 of the spring H8 is secured intermediate a pair of studs I22 fast to the lever I 80. The opposite end I24 of the spring H8 projects between a pair of ears I26 struck up from a plate I28 rotatable upon the reduced diameter I I6 of the collar I I4. The rotatable plate I28 abuts against a shoulder I38 formed by an enlarged diameter of the collar I I4.

An additional portion I32 of the shaft I86 has an enlarged diameter received in a depressed portion on the end face of collar H4 to confine the collar against endwise movement along the shaft I86. The outer face of the enlarged diameter of the collar H4 is provided with a pin I34 which rotatably projects through an aperture in one end of a link I36, link I36 being maintained upon the pin I34 by means of a cotter pin I38. The opposite end of link I36 has pivotal connection at I48 with one arm of a bell crank I42 pivoted at I44 to an upstanding portion (not shown) of the base I8. The other arm of the bell crank I42 is pivotally secured at I46 to a depending portion I48 of the under surface 28 of the buck I4.

Plate I28 is provided with an ear to which a cable I58 of a Bowden wire I52 is pivotally secured. The Bowden wire I52 may be secured by a clip I54 in the arm 28 and is threaded through the arm 28 to project through a boss I56 integral with the lever 56. The cable I58 is provided with a button I58 adjacent the handle I8 of the lever 66 for actuation by the machine operator.

It will be understood that as the shoe 88 is moved into position over the buck I4 or from the position shown in Fig. 2 to the position shown in Fig. 3, the pin 86 rides in the slot 98 in such a manner as to rotate the lever I88 in a counterclockwise direction as viewed in Figs. 2 and 8 During this counterclockwise movement of the lever I88 the plate I28 remains stationary with respect to the collar I I4 and maintains the collar against rotary movement upon the stub shaft I86. During this counterclockwise movement of I the lever I88 the link I38 applies force through the pin I34 in a direction tending to rotate the collar II 4 in a clockwise direction as viewed in Figs. 2 to 4; such tendency for movement of the collar H4 tends to tighten the spring H8 upon the diameter H6 of the collar H4 and prevents rotation of the collar I I4 upon the stub shaft I86. This movement of the pin I84 withdraws the link I36 to the left as viewed in Figs. 2 to 4 and results in clockwise rotation of the bell crank I42 and a lowering of the buck I4 against the action of springs I8, thus increasing the compression of the springs I8. After the shoe 88 and buck I4 have assumed the position shown in Fig. 3, and with the material to be ironed located between these two ironing elements the operator may release the energy pent up in the springs I8 by pushing the button I58 of the Bowden wire and rotating the plate I28 to unwind the spring H8 through the ears I26, thereby permitting springs I3 to rotate the bell crank I42 in a counter clockwise direction and draw the link I86 toward the right as viewed in Figs. 2 to 4.

Upon completion of the ironing operation, the operator grasps the handle I8 and rotates the lever 66 in a counterclockwise direction to project the finger 54 beneath the end 52 of the spring 46 to release the'locking arrangement between the arm and base and to lift the arm 28. Lifting movement of the arm 28 rotates the lever I in a clockwisendirection. Such rotation of the lever I00 recocks the pressure applying mechanism by rotating the collar H4 in a counterclockwise direction. Such counterclockwise rotation of the collar H4 is permitted by the spring H8 inasmuch as such rotation tends to unwind spring H8 so that the outside diameter 6 of the collar 4 may rotate within the temporarily enlarged inside diameter of the spring H8.

It is to be understood that the shoe 80 has a polished metallic pressing surface on its underside for smoothing material which may be interposed between it and the buck Id. The buck I4 is covered with a plurality of pads of absorbent padding material and a fabric facing member such as unbleached muslin to absorb moisture in the form of vapor which may be given off during the ironing operation. It is to be expressly understood that these two elements might conceivably be reversed, the buck forming the upper element and the shoe the lower element.

While the invention has been described with some detail, it is to be understood that the description is for the purpose of illustration only and is not definitive of the limits of the inventive idea. The right is reserved to make such changes in the details of construction and arrangement of parts as will fall within the purview of the attached claims.

I claim:

1. In a press ironer: abase, a buck carried by springs mounted on said base and operable to be moved vertically downwardly against said spring pressure, an arm pivoted to said base, a pressing shoe carried by said arm and coopenable with said buck, means connected to said arm for retracting said buck against said spring pressure, said means being operated by lowering said arm into pressing position, means for locking said arm in pressing position, means for locking said buck in depressed position and means for releasing said buck locking means.

2. In a press ironer, a base, a spring mounted buck carried on said base, an arm pivoted to said base for rotation about a horizontal axis, a pressihg shoe carried by said arm and cooperable with said buck, means for drawing said buck against its spring mount, said means being operable by lowering said arm into pressing position, means for locking said arm in a pressing position, means for locking said buck in a spring-compressed position, control means for releasing said locking means, and control means for releasing said arm, both said control means being mounted on one operating handle.

3. In a press iro-ner, a base, a pressing buck mounted on said base, a pressing shoe cooperable with said buck, said shoe being carried by said base and mounted for movement toward and away from pressing relationship with said buck, means for locking said shoe in pressing relationship with said buck, pressure applying and storing means cooperable vnth said buck, means operable by movement of said shoe intopressing relationship with said buck to store energy in said pressure applying and storing means, and means for releasing the energy in said pressure applying and storing means when said shoe is locked in pressing relationship with said buck for applying pressure itO said buck.

4. Ironing apparatus comprising a shoe and a buck, a frame, spring means between said frame and said buck for supporting said buck, an arm forming a pivotal connection between said base and said shoe and supporting said shoe for movement toward and away from pressing relation with said buck, means, actuated by movement of said arm upon movement of said shoe into pressing relartion with said buckfor moving said buck and loading said spring means, means operable for releasing said spring means when said shoe is locked in pressing relationship with said buck and a release for said arm locking means to permit movement of said shoe away from said buck.

THEODORE R. BUSH. 

